Canberra Jobs

Which Canberra jobs are the most sought after? What kind of work is available in the capital of Australia?

There's everything from retail and hospitality to building, from education to trades.

But the jobs that attract a large number of the working population are the ones in the government, defence and tertiary education.

The work force in Canberra is rather young.

The percentage of younger people in the capital of Australia is high, much higher than elsewhere around the country.

Canberra Jobs - Quick Facts

Australian National University in Canberra

Below are some facts based on the 2006 census data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). While the information is a bit old and the numbers may have changed, trends usually remain in place for a while.

Three sectors: federal administration, defence and universities account for more than a quarter of the local employment, compared to just about 8% for the whole country.

In terms of occupation, professionals plus administration workers and managers represented almost two thirds of all Canberra workers in 2006. The same occupations employed less than half of all working Australians across the country.

This is reflected in the income too. As per the census data, the weekly median individual income in Canberra was higher by 55% compared to overall Australia.

To sum up, as the population of the Australian capital city is quite small: only about 2% of the country's work force earns an income in Canberra.

Most of them are in public administration, followed by scientific, professional and technical services and health care sectors.

These are skilled and very skilled people, many with tertiary qualifications or postgraduate degrees.

And with younger and highly educated residents, more of Canberra's population is in the work force compared to the average for the country.

More of the workers have full time jobs and, on average, there is a larger share of women employed in the capital of Australia than elsewhere in the country.

The student population in the city goes to some of the best universities in Australia, such as the University of Canberra, the Australian National University, the Australian Defence Force Academy.

With so many students and highly qualified people, it is no wonder that prices of properties for sale in Canberra are high, whether you want to purchase or rent.

Do you want to know where the capital of the country is and how to get there? Go to Canberra info page for more details.

Click on the images below to get more tips on how to search for a job.